


Featherlight

by clandestinemeetingsinthetrees



Series: ZK Drabble December 2020 [10]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Katara has scar touching privileges, Zuko's Scar (Avatar), descriptions of burns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-23
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:21:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28256853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/clandestinemeetingsinthetrees/pseuds/clandestinemeetingsinthetrees
Summary: Zuko doesn't let anyone touch his scar, except Katara.
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: ZK Drabble December 2020 [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2040542
Comments: 7
Kudos: 75
Collections: ZK Drabble December 2020





	Featherlight

Zuko was not big on physical affection, but touching his scar was entirely off limits. He’d let no one touch it when he woke up after the Agni Kai. The healers warned him it against looking at it, insisted they continue to change his bandages, but he didn’t want anyone to look upon his shame. So he went to the mirror, pealed back the bandages to see the burnt flesh underneath. It didn’t look like what he expected. He’d dealt with burns before, every firebender has, but he could tell this was much worse. He thought his skin would look like a bad blister; he didn’t expect it to be almost white.

Then he had to rub the ointment on it. He was expecting it to hurt badly and was cursing himself for still being such a coward, but after the initial sting it soothed his skin.

The healers must have cut away most of the dead tissue, left side of his face looked as if it was dug into his cheek. The vision in his left eye was a bit fuzzy, the healers said it was miracle he could see out of it at all. He’d never thought his face to be especially handsome but now he knew it’d never be.

He wrapped up the bandage himself and boarded a ship the next morning.

…

The next time someone tries to touch his scar, he’s in the Earth Kingdom. She reaches for his face, but he grabs her wrist. She doesn’t understand that he brought this on himself. When she shows him her own scar, she thinks they are the same, but it just reminds him that he’s the villain in her story even if she doesn’t know it. As he leaves, he takes her ostrich-horse and doesn’t look back.

…

Then he’s in Ba Sing Se, and he’s given up on the Avatar and his honor and his _name_ and all he wants is peace. But then his stupid uncle makes him go on this stupid date with some stupid girl and he feels all _nervous_ for some reason. Why would she have a crush on _him?_

When she leans in to kiss him, he puts a coupon between them. Agni, he’s so scared and he doesn’t know why! When she reaches for his face, he worries she’ll touch his scar, but she goes for his right cheek instead. He kisses her but he regrets it immediately. She doesn’t know him and if she did, she wouldn’t want him. He doesn’t ask her out again.

…

The first time he lets someone touch his scar, it’s his enemy. Or at least she used to be his enemy? Now he’s confused. He thinks she might understand him and then she offers to do the impossible and it _feels_ like a trap, but he decides to let her try anyways. For too long he’s let this scar define him and when she says she can heal it he dangerously lets himself have hope.

She reaches out to touch him and for once he doesn’t shy away or grab her hand, but he does close his eyes.

Then the Avatar smashes through the wall with _his uncle_ and the moment is gone and he feels more confused than he ever has before.

As he’s standing at the crossroads of destiny, he picks the wrong side. He still remembers the look of hurt in her eyes.

…

He never lets Mai touch his scar and she never tries. They avoid it like they avoid all hard topics of conversation. Sometimes he wonders if Mai even looks at it or if she just sees the Zuko she’s loved since she was a kid. He’s not sure if it bothers him or if he likes it. At least she doesn’t think he’s damaged.

…

When he joins the Avatar, she’s wary of him. He understands. He’s starting to think he’s always understood her.

He wants to make it up to her. He decides to give her what he wished he always had: closure.

The others don’t understand. They try to stop her or force forgiveness on her, but he doesn’t judge. She didn’t kill him, but he wouldn’t have blamed her if she had. She’s so strong.

It’s not until they’re back on Appa that she lets herself cry. She’s exhausted, mentally and physically, and they land on a small island to rest. Just yesterday she could barely sit at a campfire with him and now she’s crying into his shoulder. He rests his head against hers and almost doesn’t notice when she presses her cheek against his scar.

…

It became little touches after that. She’d examine his face after a particularly rough sparring match and happen to graze its edges. When she fixed his hair the palm of her hand would happen to rest against it. He wonders if she understands how on edge she makes him or if she gets what a big deal it is every time she touches it. He wished he weren’t so hyperaware.

They’re on Ember Island and the comet’s coming closer and closer but all he can think about is the girl who watches their firebending practice everyday. It’s unnerving.

One day, while lounging on the couch, Toph reaches up to touch his face but she aims to close to his scar and, out of habit, he swats her away.

“Hey Sparky, what was that for?” Toph remarks.

“You got too close to his scar,” Sokka says without looking up from the scroll he was examining. “Only Katara’s allowed to touch it.”

Zuko curses himself for being so obvious.

…

Years later, when she cups his face to kiss him for the first time, her fingers wrap around his scar, and it should feel suffocating, but her touch is featherlight.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you guys like this one! It took me forever to write but that's mostly cause of all the in show scenes it referenced. I've just been rewatching atla all day lol


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